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Alabama Senate approves bill allowing written religious vaccine exemptions to schools
Summary
The Alabama Senate passed legislation that lets parents submit a written religious exemption directly to K–12 schools rather than obtaining a signed form from county health departments. An amendment requiring a recent physician-signed physical or an AHSAA participation form was added before final passage.
The Alabama Senate passed legislation changing how parents may claim religious exemptions from school immunization requirements, approving the measure on a 26-5 final vote after adopting an amendment that requires a recent physician physical or Alabama High School Athletic Association participation form.
Supporters said the bill removes a burdensome middle step — a county health department visit to receive a formal exemption form — and protects parents from what they described as intrusive questioning and, in some counties, fees. Opponents warned the change reduces public-health tracking and could make it harder to identify and contain outbreaks.
Senator Orr introduced the bill as a returning measure that the Senate considered in an earlier session. Orr said the current process requires parents who claim a religious exemption to visit a county health department, and he said health departments in some counties have been charging fees or pressing parents about their beliefs. “Mobile was charging, I believe it was $30 to exercise your religious faith,” Orr said on the floor, and he later said Jefferson County had charged $10. Orr described the proposal as a “streamlined process” used in about two dozen other states, where a written parental statement to the school is sufficient for a religious exemption.
Lawmakers debated the policy and its risks. Senator Coleman Madison said she supports religious freedom but worried the bill removes a public-health data point. “I feel as if [the health department] would be the correct place…to make sure things can be tracked,” Coleman Madison said, noting the value of tracing exposures during outbreaks such as recent measles clusters in other states.
Senator Singleton offered an amendment intended to address those tracking and safety concerns. The amendment, which the Senate adopted 21-7, requires that an exemption accompanied by the written parental statement be paired with either a board-approved physician physical-evaluation form or an Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) participation physical completed within the previous 12 months. Singleton described the change as a compromise to ensure that children who enter classrooms without vaccinations have recent medical clearance, saying it would show the child “has had some medical attention within the last 12 months prior to them opting out.”
Senator Stewart and other members questioned aspects of the amendment during debate: Stewart asked how a physical from months earlier would guarantee a child was not contagious later in the school year. Senator Orr said the amendment represented a negotiation and that he preferred the bill without additional requirements but accepted the change to win support.
After the amendment vote, the Senate moved to third reading. The final recorded vote on Senate Bill 85 was 26 ayes and 5 nays, and the bill was declared passed.
The bill’s text, as debated on the floor, does not eliminate standard immunization records for students who are vaccinated; it changes the administrative step for claiming a religious exemption. Lawmakers on both sides said they expect further discussion as the bill moves to the House. Opponents repeatedly emphasized that public-health surveillance and the ability to trace exposures rely on consistent reporting; proponents emphasized parental religious liberty and removing what they called an unnecessary hurdle.
